By Myself a Rose

2024 | Acrylic on Canvas, Stretched on Wood Frame

Everyone in life needs love and affection, not the kind you get from family or friends. This love is the kind you get from a true companion. This original African artwork depicts a woman who longed for love, but the walls around her were built so high and kept so secure that she never had the chance to experience what it truly feels like to be loved. In the name of protecting her, they kept her from receiving even the simplest gestures, no flowers, no chocolate, no thoughtful gifts.

So, she made a choice: instead of waiting for someone else to fill that emptiness, she decided to fill it herself. She chose to give herself all the love and care she had been denied.

See more artwork by Ndushabandi (Khenan Cox) Derrick